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Neo-traditionalists Conrad Praetzel and Robert Powell stake out their claim in the Americana landscape with an eclectic mix of ambient folk and acid/alt country. Clothesline Revival blends electronic and acoustic beats with dobro, mandolin, guitars, lap and pedal steel guitar, ebow, atmospherics and more to create a captivating new sound with an old-time haunting quality. Included are adaptations of historical field recordings (several recorded by the legendary American musicologist Alan Lomax) including performances by Leadbelly, Ora Dell Graham, and an unidentified old train caller. Vocalists Wendy Allen and Tom Armstrong lend their talents to songs by Hank Williams, Bill Monroe, Onie Wheeler, Anne Briggs as well as to traditional American folk songs. Wendy Allen, from North Carolina, is a mesmerizing singer and interpreter of American roots music, while Tom Armstrong's vocals recall classic honky tonk and country crooners of the fifties like Wynn Stewart and Letfy Frizzel.
Review
In an era where musical appropriation and cross-pollination have become the virtual norm, Praetzel and co. have accomplished something truly unprecedented and wonderful -- and something deeply meaningful to anyone with an appreciation for the American folk tradition. -- epitonic.com, Jesse Ashlock
Product details
Is Discontinued By Manufacturer
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No
Product Dimensions
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5.72 x 0.4 x 4.98 inches; 3.52 Ounces
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I'm really not sure how I stumbled across this, but its truly enchanting. Obviously carefully recorded. The samples really don't do it justice. I found that I like their other albums too.
If there were clips here for you to listen to, I wouldn't need to write anything: you'd hear the music and you'd buy the disc. I got turned on to this CD at the zine Puremusic.com, where there was first a review and more recently interviews with all the key players--they also have a nice selection of clips, so you might zip over there for a listen and then come back and purchase. If you don't hear the sound, you can't know what I mean by "traditional" or "experimental" or "beautiful" or "intelligent" or "terrific turned up in the truck." The music has many layers of interest, but my first thought was "This sounds great!" rather than "This sounds unusual." Really, you've got to hear it to know.
An unusual roots album that blends old-timey themes (and even some remixed archival recordings from the Library of Congress, such as the original Leadbelly vocals on "Cow Cow Yicky Yicky Yea...") with oddball, modernized sonic backgrounds. Arrangers Conrad Praetzel and Robert Powell use a few electronic "beats," although many tunes seem more ambient or even world music-ish. It's certainly a novel approach to the material, reverential yet strikingly innovative. The opening tracks, particularly those featuring vocals by Bay Area honkytonker Tom Armstrong, are pretty cool, though the second half of the album seems to meander and lose focus. Still, this album opens up some really interesting possibilities for a new approach to this old-fashioned American music.
Reviewed in the United States on December 12, 2002
Clothesline Revival These guys should get a lot of attention for this great album. Its unlike anything you've heard before - not country, not new age, not in a category. Original, each track interesting in its own way, great to listen to. Some cuts both complex and footstomping at the same time. Other cuts both mellow and edgy. Its just amazing fresh new music. One of the best CDs I've heard in a long time.
Reviewed in the United States on February 12, 2003
clothesline revival. conrad took all this country music and ... it up in the most astonishing way. beats, loops, effects. it's alt alt country and it's the kind of thing i want to listen to on dark nights (as opposed to um what, light nights? good gracious) when it's warm enough to have the windows open. it's like when you were a kid and your mom told you a scary story that's pretty at the same time, and you're haunted for years.
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